Palette Town

Palette Town Review

This complex of malls and amusements is located at the east end of the island. The uncontested landmark here is the the 377-foot-high Palette Town Ferris Wheel, one of the world's largest. It was modeled after the London Eye; it's open daily 10-10 and costs ¥900. Just opposite is Mega Web, a complex of rides and multimedia amusements that's also a showcase for the Toyota Motor Corporation. You can ride a car (hands off—the ride is electronically controlled) over a 1-km (½-mi) course configured like a roller coaster but moving at a stately pace. You can drive any car you want, of course, as long as it's a Toyota. The shopping mall Venus Fort (Palette Town 1-chome, Aomi, Koto-ku. 03/3599-0700) at Aomi consists of galleries designed to suggest an Italian Renaissance palazzo, with arches and cupolas, marble fountains and statuary, and painted vault ceilings. The mall is chock-full of boutiques by the likes of Jean Paul Gaultier, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, and all the other usual suspects.